Southern California -- this just in

John Travolta's stolen classic Mercedes recovered, two men arrested

January 25, 2012 | 11:27
am

A classic Mercedes-Benz stolen from actor John Travolta has been recovered and two were men arrested for allegedly running a theft ring specializing in classic and muscle cars, authorities said Wednesday.

Auto theft investigators arrested Michael Green and D.L. Rayford Jr. in connection with the ring and recovered the Mercedes 280 SL convertible that was stolen last September when Travolta left it parked for about 10 minutes in a Santa Monica residential neighborhood.

During the investigation, Santa Monica police detectives obtained video footage of the vehicle and the suspects as it was being stolen from the 1400 block of Berkeley Street.

Detectives turned over the video and tips from the public to the Taskforce for Regional Auto Theft Prevention, which includes investigators from the L.A. County Sheriff's Department, the Los Angeles Police Department, the California Highway Patrol and other agencies in the region.

The information helped to identify the two suspects and led to the car theft ring that targeted older-model Mercedes and muscle cars, said Sgt. Richard Lewis of the Santa Monica Police Department.

Eight stolen vehicles and miscellaneous parts from other vehicles have since been recovered, he said.

Lewis said the investigation is ongoing and anyone with information is asked to contact Det. Steve Smetzer at (310) 458-8936 or the Santa Monica Police Department at (310) 458-8495.

The public may also call the Task Force for Regional Auto theft Prevention at (818) 830-6977 and ask for LAPD Det. George Molina.